1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to telephones. More specifically, the present invention relates to integrated cordless and wireless telephones.
2. Description of the Related Art
The field of telephony has changed dramatically since the break-up of ATandT in the early 1980""s. Competition has driven innovation and the range of products available to consumers has increased accordingly. One area of innovation has been the development of cordless telephones. Cordless telephones are similar to conventional corded telephones in that they are connected by wire to a local central office. But, they differ in that there is no cord between the base unit of the cordless telephone and the handset; thus, they are termed xe2x80x98cordlessxe2x80x99 telephones. Cordless telephones add the convenience of mobility within the range of coverage of the cordless telephone.
The deployment of cellular service established the beginning of a wireless telephony era. The first widely adopted and implemented standard in the United States was AMPS cellular. Later, other standards were implemented, including TDMA (IS-136), CDMA (IS-95), GSM, PCS (various standards), and others. All of these wireless telephones share the characteristic that there is no local metallic loop employed to render service. Rather, a wireless telephone network is deployed by a service provider, and wide area coverage (at least respecting the coverage of a cordless telephone) is delivered via radio signals. The wireless telephones do not typically comprise a base unit; rather, the entire telephone circuitry is inside a single enclosure, including the battery.
Wireless telephones do suffer from certain disadvantages. They are physically small, and hence the user interface is rather compact and reduces the convenience of operation. The transmitter power and received signal strengths are very low, due to the battery power limitations and network infrastructure considerations. This means that radio signal strength is often time so limited that interference and noise become common annoyances during calls. The mobility of the receiver exacerbates this because of the vagaries of radio propagation, including multi-path interference, Rayleigh fading, and physical blocking of radio signal paths. In addition, wireless telephones have limited battery life, especially during extended conversation times.
Cordless telephones offer improved interfaces and performance over wireless telephones in most circumstances. They are usually larger and have more complete and convenient user interfaces. The base unit can house voice messaging systems and speakerphones. They operate in a small geographic area so that signal levels at the receivers of both the base and handset are higher, offering better receiver quieting, higher signal to noise ratios, and less interference generally. They also offer longer battery life standby and talk times, owing to their larger batteries and their more extended times at rest on a charging cradle.
The trend for many users of wireless telephones is toward using the wireless telephone as the principal communications device, even over the traditional wired and corded telephones. Users merely keep their wireless telephone with them at all times, whether during travel, at home, or at work. Thus, they are readily reachable by calling to the wireless telephone number. However, this means that the aforementioned limitations of wireless telephones are always present for such users. It is known in the art to utilize a base unit with a wireless telephone that offers battery charging, hands free operation, and even interfaces to RJ-11 devices, such as wired telephones. However, such devices are cumbersome to use, limit mobility, and may require installation procedures beyond the skill level of average users. Thus, there is a need in the art for an integration apparatus and method to improve upon the utilization of a wireless telephone in a local geographic area while maintaining mobility through the use of cordless telephony technology.
The need in the art is addressed by the apparatus and methods of the present invention. A docking station for interconnecting telephone calls between a wireless telephone and a cordless telephone is taught. The docking station comprises an electrical interface, having a plurality of connectors for coupling audio and data signals with the wireless telephone, and a transceiver operable to communicate telephone calls via radio signals to the cordless telephone. The transceiver is coupled to at least a first audio signal connector in the electrical interface. The docking station also includes a controller coupled to the transceiver, and coupled to at least a first data connector in the electrical interface. The controller is operable to communicate data signals with the wireless telephone when coupled to the electrical interface, and is also operable to process telephone calls between the wireless telephone and the cordless telephone via the transceiver.
In a refinement of the forgoing invention the electrical interface is aligned with a socket in a case of the docking station, and a removably mountable interface adapter is used. The interface adapter includes a docking station electrical interface adapted to connect with the electrical interface in the socket and a wireless telephone cradle formed to received and support the wireless telephone. The cradle has a wireless telephone electrical interface adapted to connect with the wireless telephone. The interface adapter also has an interface circuit operable to interconnect the docking station electrical interface with the wireless telephone electrical interface. In a further refinement, the interface circuit utilizes electrical components operable to adapt wireless telephone signals to signals at the electrical interface. Thus, differences in signal levels between the docking station interface and the particular wireless telephone used can be adjusted for.
In another refinement, the docking station invention also includes a power supply coupled to at least a first connector in the electrical interface, and coupled to the transceiver and the controller. Thus, where the wireless telephone operates from rechargeable batteries, and where the interface circuit has a first connector in the electrical interface to the wireless telephone, it is made operable to charge the rechargeable batteries in the wireless telephone, eliminating the need to use the conventional wireless telephone charging devices. To further refine the simplicity and convenience, where the cordless telephone operates from rechargeable batteries, the docking station is further refined. It includes a cordless telephone cradle disposed upon a case enclosing the docking station, and a cordless telephone electrical interface aligned with the cordless telephone cradle. The power supply is coupled to at least a first conductor in the cordless telephone electrical interface, and is operable to charge the cordless telephone rechargeable batteries, in addition to charging the wireless telephone.
In another refinement of the docking station, it also incorporates a speakerphone having an audio interface and a control interface. The controller is coupled to the speakerphone control interface and is operable to selectively coupled the speakerphone audio interface to the electrical interface audio signals, thereby enabling the speakerphone function for telephone calls on the wireless telephone.
Another apparatus is taught by the present invention that is a docking station for interconnecting telephone calls between a wireless telephone and a cordless telephone, wherein both of the wireless telephone and the cordless telephone operate from rechargeable batteries. The docking station comprises a case and an electrical interface aligned with a socket in the case, and has several connectors for coupling power, audio and data signals with the wireless telephone. It also has a removably mountable interface adapter. The interface adapter comprises a docking station electrical interface adapted to connect with the electrical interface in the socket of the case and a wireless telephone cradle formed to received and support the wireless telephone. The cradle has a wireless telephone electrical interface adapted to connect with the wireless telephone. The interface also has an interface circuit operable to interconnect the docking station electrical interface with the wireless telephone electrical interface. The docking station also has a transceiver operable to communicate telephone calls via radio signals to the cordless telephone, and the transceiver is coupled to at least a first audio signal connector in the electrical interface. The docking station also has a controller coupled to the transceiver, and coupled to at least a first data connector in the electrical interface, the controller being operable to communicate data signals with the wireless telephone when coupled to the electrical interface, and being operable to process telephone calls between the wireless telephone and the cordless telephone via the transceiver. In addition, the docking station has a power supply coupled to at least a first connector in the electrical interface, and coupled to the transceiver and the controller. The interface circuit couples the first connector in the electrical interface to the wireless telephone, and is operable to charge the rechargeable batteries in the wireless telephone. A cordless telephone cradle is disposed upon the case and has a cordless telephone electrical interface aligned with it. The power supply is coupled to a first conductor in the cordless telephone electrical interface, and is operable to charge the cordless telephone rechargeable batteries. A speakerphone having an audio interface and a control interface is also incorporated into the docking station. The controller is coupled to the speakerphone control interface and is operable to selectively coupled the speakerphone audio interface to the electrical interface audio signals, thereby enabling the speakerphone function for telephone calls on the wireless telephone while the wireless telephone is interfaced to the electrical interface.
The present invention also teaches a method of interconnecting telephone calls between a wireless telephone, having a first electrical interface, and a cordless telephone using a docking station that has a second electrical interface and a transceiver, which is operable to couple telephone calls, via radio waves, with the cordless telephone. The second electrical interface has at least a first audio connector coupled to the transceiver and at least a first data connector coupled to a controller in the docking station. The method comprises the steps of connecting the first electrical interface to the second electrical interface, receiving a ring data signal by the controller from the wireless telephone through the data connector, and, in response to receiving the ring data signal, coupling audio signals between the audio connector and the cordless telephone through the transceiver.
Another method comprises the steps of connecting the first electrical interface to the second electrical interface, entering a telephone number into a keypad on the cordless telephone, communicating the telephone number to the controller via the transceiver, establishing a wireless telephone call by sending the telephone number from the controller to the wireless telephone through the at least a first data connector, and coupling audio signals between the at least a first audio connector and the cordless telephone through the transceiver during the telephone call.
Another method involves the transferring of data between a wireless telephone, having a first electrical interface, and a cordless telephone using a docking station having a second electrical interface. The docking station has a transceiver operable to couple information, via radio waves, with the cordless telephone. The docking station also has a controller coupled to the second electrical interface and also coupled to the transceiver. The method comprises the steps of detecting the presence of the wireless telephone at the docking station upon the connection of the first electrical interface to the second electrical interface. Then, transferring data from the wireless telephone to the transceiver by the controller. Next, transmitting the data by the transceiver to the cordless telephone. And finally, storing the data in a memory in the cordless telephone, in either of the handset or base portion inside the docking station. The data may be the list of telephone numbers and other associated data from a repertoire memory dialer.